Implants are widely used in bone and dental surgery for restoration dentition. Implants can be used, for example, for anchoring a dental prosthesis such as an artificial tooth to the jawbone or maxilla of a patient. Various types of dental implants are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,179,088, 6,991,461, 6,863,530, 6,227,860, 5,951,288, 5,931,674, 5,863,200, 5,470,230, 5,417,569, and 4,531,916, all of the above references being incorporated by reference herein.
A typical dental implant has a generally cylindrical shaped body which is mounted into a hole pre-drilled into bone. Similarly, implants used to anchor to tendons/ligaments in orthopedic procedures are also mounted into pre-drilled holes in surrounding bone or in the alternative directly to tendons/ligaments. The implant can be threadedly fitted or press fitted into the hole. The prosthesis can then be fixedly mounted to the implant and secured within the bone. However, it is possible for the implant to loosen if, for example, the hole is or becomes too big, is improperly drilled, the bone has insufficient density, or the implant is placed in bone with insufficient thickness, as in a hyperpneumatized sinus. This can result in loss of the implant or prosthesis and require a subsequent operation to remedy the situation. In addition, if the implant becomes loose the resulting motion may prevent new bone growth from attaching to the implant and securing it in the bone. The present disclosure describes a dental implant that can deploy stabilizers within a formed body cavity in tissue, which may include bone, to secure a dental implant.